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As Blackouts Hit California,
Traders Manipulated Market

By

Scott Thurm, Robert Gavin and

Mitchel Benson Staff Reporters of The Wall Street Journal

Updated Sept. 16, 2002 12:01 a.m. ET

Shortly before 9 p.m. on Nov. 11, 2000, opportunity fell into Steve Tish's lap, courtesy of California's energy crisis. Mr. Tish, a trader at PG&E Corp.'s National Energy Group, had been buying small blocks of power at a trading hub in Arizona. Now, another trader wanted the juice at the California-Oregon border, more than 800 miles away, at a price more than double what Mr. Tish had paid for it.

It was a Saturday evening, and Californians were using around half as much power as on the hottest summer days. But...